Lake CANAAN
by CanaanAlphardForever
Summary: An AU oneshot with the characters of CANAAN, gathering at a lake in celebration. CanaanxMaria, CanaanxAlphard, AlphardxLiang Qi


Author's Note: Alright, so this is a bit rushed and forced, and there is really no point to this, but it was an idea my sister had and I just had to write this. It's like a guess as to what the characters would do with their lives if they weren't doing terrorist stuff like they do in the anime. I apologise for this though, lol, but I did enjoy writing it ^^

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Alphard hummed softly under her breath to a song on the radio as she navigated her car down a busy road. She kept a steady gaze on the street until she noticed the right turn off that she took the moment she got an opening. Once cleared of traffic, Alphard pressed on the gas and rode steadily along the bumpy dirt road towards her destination. Once it came into view Alphard narrowed her eyes and smirked.

It was a beautiful lake, not that big but big enough to water ski on, surrounded by lush green trees and bushes. In the distance the sunset cast a calming orange glow on the area Alphard was headed towards, making the raven-head suck in a deep breath at the colourful art of nature.

The only things belonging to civilization in this picture of wildness were one car parked off to the left, where Alphard drove and parked her car too, and the group of people sitting in a circle closer to the water. Once she was successfully parked and she turned the ignition off, Alphard jumped out of the car, slipped her keys into her black pants pocket, and walked over to the group.

"Alphy!" Someone exclaimed once Alphard had approached and all eyes turned to the raven-head.

"Hey guys!" Alphard greeted and stopped beside Canaan. "Hey twerp." She ruffled Canaan's hair, earning a groan of annoyance and a slap, and gave Maria a wink. "Blondie."

"Hey!" Maria exclaimed with a pout. Both she and Canaan were seated on a log with Maria comfortably atop Canaan's lap, her arms around the white haired girl's neck.

"Alphard! Give Maria respect!" Canaan yelled in anger, like she had many, many times before, and grabbed a hold Alphard's wrist.

Alphard gave them a rakish grin. "Oh please, you're both raging lesbians. So tell me, whose on top?"

Maria blushed furiously while Canaan rolled her yes. "How many times must we tell you, Alphard, we are only friends!"

"Right, and I'm a terrorist." Alphard retorted with an eye roll.

"No really Alphard, we're only friends." Maria said and looked up at Alphard with pleading eyes. The taller of the three caved in under the pressure and sighed in defeat.

"Like always I apologise, Maria, Canaan. I only tease you because I care." Alphard waved them off.

Alphard, Canaan and Maria had met years ago when Canaan, in the midst of pointing out one of the popular guy's idiocy, was attacked by the guy in his fury. Luckily for Canaan and her best friend Maria, their upperclassman had noticed and jumped in to save them. Ever since that day, even after Alphard finished with High school and started with college, they remained close friends. The raven-head was turning 20 while both Canaan and Maria were closing towards 18.

Alphard turned to Yuri, who had just arrived and was busy unpacking the grocery bags she had brought filled with drinks and snacks. "Hey boss, do you know when my dad will get here?" She asked and hurried to help Yuri with the heavy bags.

"Thanks," Yuri responded and heaved another bag out of the backseat of her car, "he told me to go ahead while he finished up with a report. He should be here soon."

"He'll probably only get here late then." Alphard sighed and rolled her eyes. Her father was known for his passion and dedication to his work.

"Sorry kiddo, but we had trouble with one of the employees and it ended up turning into a fight. If your father hadn't barrelled in like he always does we probably would have a few injured people."

"Really? What happened?"

Yuri sighed deeply as she finished unpacking the last packet. She brushed her hands off against each other and took a seat directly across from Canaan and Maria, the two busy chatting and laughing away. "It was Seno."

"That bastard, what did he do this time? He didn't hurt you did he?"

"Oh, no," Yuri waved her hand dismissively, "he claimed that one of the guys stole his experiment and wouldn't let it go."

"I hope dad arrested him."

"He did." Yuri moved her glasses up along the bridge of her nose and grinned. "He even gave him a nice black eye for attempting to punch me."

Alphard's father worked in the local police station, and he truly was passionate about his job. He was skilled at what he did and most times forgot about all else other than saving a victim. He had put his life in danger more times than anyone could count, but luckily he always came away the winner, capturer or saviour.

Alphard shook her head. "I knew that guy was bad news. You should have listened to me the day you hired him."

"I know Alphard, but besides you we really needed more help in the lab."

Yuri worked as a researcher in the local lab, and after finding out that Alphard had been in financial trouble, offered a job to her as her assistant. Alphard studied at collage and worked as well. She was determined to become a doctor, and with the rate of her success, was sure to become a very brilliant one.

"Anything new come up?" Alphard questioned and accepted the drink Yuri handed to her. The bespectacled woman nodded and retrieved a drink for herself.

"The reports about that new virus came in; it's called the Ua Virus. So far only the first and last stages of the virus have been discovered."

"Please share."

"Well, the first stage is called the Unbloom stage where normal flu symptoms start. The only way to detect if it is the Ua virus is if the Borner stage appears, the last stage which is a mark caused by random blood vessels in the body that rise. We don't know why it does this or what this virus actually is, all we know is that it is transferred through blood and can kill within a week."

"Are there any survivors?"

"A few, but they are so full of different medication to try and supress or overtake the virus that it's hardly called surviving."

Alphard took a sip from the glass bottle in her hand and focused on the cold, sweet liquid in her mouth as she thought it over. If they could get a sample of it and see the structure of the virus then maybe they could match it with something that is already known, or maybe a few characteristics could be recognized and they could find a way to classify what this virus was.

"There's a widespread panic over the world about this, but luckily only 50 reported incidents of this virus has occurred, and 80% of them appeared in Shanghai."

"So that is probably the breeding ground for it."

"Could be. Researches from all over the world have been sent over there to investigate. Everyone knows as much as we do about this thing."

Alphard and Yuri lapsed into another thoughtful silence. It was broken, however, when a car pulled up, someone jumped out, and the car drove off.

"Canaan! Maria!" A girl with ringed pigtails exclaimed with her arms wide open and sprung into the air. She crashed into the cuddling pair, and they all laughed as they fell off of the log together.

"That Yunyun." Alphard rolled her eyes at the young girl rubbing her cheeks against Canaan and Maria's.

"Yunyun!" Maria laughed and gave her friend a big hug. "I thought you couldn't make it."

Yunyun giggled and gave Canaan a hug too. "Well, at first my parents said no, but I begged and used my adorable puppy dog face and they totally caved in." The blonde and the brunette giggled together while Canaan simply smiled.

"Hey there Alphy!" Yunyun waved enthusiastically at the older girl after they had all dusted themselves off and returned to sitting on the log.

"Sup, Pigtails." Alphard waved back and grinned around the bottle as she took another sip. She had dubbed Yunyun as 'Pigtails' since the girl was well known for her odd taste in hairstyles. Yunyun hated the name in general but didn't mind it coming from Alphard. This she never told anyone, of course.

"Is that a friend of yours?" Yuri leaned close and asked Alphard.

"She's a classmate and friend of Canaan and Maria. I met Yunyun a while back when they first met her, but I don't actually know her all too well. She's a sweet kid though. A bit too ditzy and energetic, but sweet." Yuri nodded and returned to leaning back in her seat. "By the way, when are the others coming? Do you know?"

Yuri shook her head. "Anytime from now, I guess."

"Hmm," Alphard glanced up at the last remains of sunlight. It was getting dark fast. She hoped everyone arrived safely. "Wait," a thought suddenly struck the dark skinned girl, "if Canaan and Maria were here first, where is Minoru?" In reply Yuri shrugged. She only got here after Alphard had.

Remembering that fact, Alphard got up and made her way over to the three giggling teens.

"And then she grabbed my boob and-"

"No way!" Yunyun exclaimed giddily.

Maria nodded her head and Canaan blushed. Alphard raised a curious eyebrow at their topic of discussion but didn't care enough to ask about it, instead she cleared her throat and took a seat beside Canaan on the log. Right next to Canaan sat Maria, who was no longer occupying her lap, and then Yunyun.

"Canaan, where is Minoru? You guys got here first, right?"

Canaan nodded. "We got here about half an hour before you showed up. Minoru dropped us off but he left his car here for us just in case and he had a friend pick him up."

"Why though?"

"To go and fetch your sister."

"Ah." Alphard remembered her sister mentioning that she would travel with Minoru and his friend. "I hope they get here soon." The raven-head commented with slight worry and tapped her chin in thought.

"They're here." Canaan gently elbowed Alphard in the ribs to get her attention and received a nose-flick in return.

As Canaan had said a car had arrived and parked next to Alphard's. The raven-head watched as the only three occupants climbed out, grabbed a few things and headed over towards them.

Walking in the lead and looking slightly flushed and excited, was Alphard's younger step sister, Liang Qi. She had her hair tied up with a lock of hair at each side of her face, and with that she wore dark purple sneakers, black tights, and a dark purple and black skirt with a short sleeved red t-shirt that was stylishly ripped with a black shirt underneath, that was also adorned with the words 'wicked' across the chest in bold, bloody red. She wore her usual fingerless gloves and her almost maniac smile.

Just behind her was Minoru, Maria's older brother by 4 years. He looked bored and slightly pained, and wore normal grey cargo pants, brown boots and a dark blue t-shirt.

Walking beside him was his long time best friend, Cummings, who looked equally as pained, for some reason that no one could really guess until they saw him sneak a peek at Liang Qi. He had a light blue sweater on with black pants and white sneakers. Cummings and Minoru had met in high school and had remained friends all through high school and into college.

"Onee-sama!" Liang Qi exclaimed fiercely, with a wide smile on her face, and jumped on top of Alphard. The older girl managed to catch her younger step sister and keep her balance from the impact, and then uttered a relieved and somewhat exhausted sigh.

"Li-chan, I like your warm greetings and all, but I'd appreciate it if you don't jump on me every time you see me." Alphard gave her a comforting pat on the head and smiled when Liang Qi sighed in content despite being scolded.

"I'm sorry Onee-sama, but I couldn't help it. I just get so happy when I see you!" To emphasise her words she sprung up and wrapped her arms around Alphard's neck.

Everyone around them laughed and rolled their eyes at the all too familiar sight. It was no secret that Liang Qi had a massive crush, and was possibly deeply in love, with her step sibling ever since the moment they had met when they were toddlers. Alphard didn't really mind, and in fact she found Liang Qi's love-struck tendencies rather cute in a weird way, but she just didn't really feel the same.

"Onii-chan!" Maria sprang up, and almost as enthusiastically as Liang Qi, jumped into Minoru's arms. Unlike the other girl who saw her step sibling daily, Maria hardly saw her brother. They would meet up once a week if they were lucky, so Maria really was glad to see him.

"Hey sis." Minoru chuckled and returned Maria's bone-crushing hug.

Everyone calmed down after all of the greetings had been exchanged and soon they were all seated around the fire, drinking and laughing as they chatted away. The only one not engaging in the merry activity was Alphard, since she was still worried about her father who had yet to show up. Canaan noticed her older friend's distress and draped an arm around her shoulder.

"Chill out, Al. I'm sure he's alright." The white haired girl assured Alphard and gave her a rough squeeze. Alphard chuckled and wrapped an arm around Canaan's waist, surprising the girl and pulling her closer.

"Yeah, yeah, twerp, whatever you say." Alphard gently bumped her fist against Canaan's chin and gave her a grin. "Thanks for your concern." She added softly after a slight moment of silence.

"Why do you call me twerp?" Canaan enquired, her voice sounding nothing but curious. She didn't hate the nickname and just really wondered why it was given to her.

"Do you really want to know?" Canaan thought about it and then nodded. "Alright." Still holding on to each other, Alphard leaned in close and whispered into her ear, "because you are shorter and smaller than me, and also because you have tiny breasts."

"Breasts?" Canaan sat up straight and gave Alphard a confused look.

"Boobs." Alphard said with a raised finger, like she was giving a lecture, and flashed a smirk. "Or tits, if you prefer."

Canaan blushed and gave Alphard a punch on her upper arm. "Don't say stuff like that!" She exclaimed in embarrassment and disentangled herself from her older friend. Alphard laughed loudly and made no attempt to let Canaan go. She enjoyed seeing her squirm.

On her side of the group Liang Qi huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. She glared death at Canaan hanging all over _her_ beloved. It made her want to cry and attack Canaan at the same time. She had nothing radical against her sister's friend; she was just insanely jealous and hated that Canaan and her Alphard were so close.

"Li-san, would you like a drink?" Cummings asked softly. He had been watching the girl the whole time and noticed the angered looks she kept shooting at Canaan. Maybe distracting her would help.

"No." Liang Qi responded in annoyance and waved him off.

Cummings sighed and returned the second drink he had in his hand to the cooler box. When he returned to Liang Qi she had evolved from merely glaring to agitatedly chewing on her knuckles. "You shouldn't do that!" He exclaimed suddenly and pulled her hand away from her mouth.

_Her hand is so soft…_ Cummings swallowed hard and felt his heart jerk.

Liang Qi turned to him and was about to yell at him when he suddenly interrupted her and spoke first. "Beautiful hands like these shouldn't be damaged." He said softly, looking down to avoid her eyes and hide his blush.

Liang Qi's eyes widened slightly and she blushed too. "I-idiot!" She yelled and shoved him away from her with a hand to his face. Cummings fell backwards and landed on his backside, and once he had located his lost glasses, returned them and watched Liang Qi's back as she walked away. A blissful smile grazed his lips and he couldn't help but sigh.

"Oi," Minoru popped up beside him and looked from Liang Qi to his fallen friend, "are you still chasing after that psycho?" He asked in amusement.

"Yes," Cummings stood and readjusted his glasses, "and she isn't a psycho, Mino-san, she is special."

Minoru rolled his eyes dramatically. "Sure pal, whatever that sensitive and slightly masochistic heart of yours tells you." Cummings gave him a glare. "Oh come on, let it go. Tonight we have fun!" Minoru dragged Cummings off to the alcohol and ignored his cries of protest.

Meanwhile, Liang Qi had interrupted Alphard and Canaan's moment and squeezed in between them. She ignored their eye rolls and rested her head against Alphard's shoulder. "Onee-sama, can I sleep over by you tonight?" she purred, sending a shiver of dread down Alphard's spine. Alphard looked to Canaan in panic but all the white haired girl could do was shrug and mouth an apology.

Alphard sighed and wrapped an arm around her step sister. "Sure, as long as you don't sneak into my bed again." She was confident that Liang Qi wouldn't listen, but she didn't have the heart to say no.

Canaan chuckled and turned back to her two friends. She had neglected them in the time she had spent playfully arguing with Alphard.

"Maria, is there someone you like?" Yunyun had her head bowed closely with Maria's, and they spoke softly together.

"Mm, I do." Maria responded cheerfully and smiled. Canaan focused her gaze elsewhere but kept her ears trained to the conversation. "Do you?"

"I do!" Yunyun responded.

"Who is it?"

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours?"

"Deal." Maria and Yunyun giggle again and then quieted down. "There's this boy in my class…" Maria began and Canaan unfocused and shifted away from the two girls.

Honestly, hearing that made Canaan's heart drop. She didn't want to admit how disappointed she felt. The white haired girl's lip trembled and she looked up to meet Alphard's concerned and knowing gaze.

"Li-chan, can you get a drink for me?" Alphard asked softly and watched in relief as Liang Qi jumped up and happily scurried away to be of use to her heart's desire. Once she was free, Alphard stood, grabbed Canaan and pulled her off into the woods. They walked for a small distance and then stopped.

"Alphard?" Canaan questioned.

"Are you alright?" Alphard asked and dropped Canaan's hand.

"How did you know?"

Alphard grinned. "I know you better than you know yourself. Now spill it, what broke your heart so suddenly?"

Canaan sighed and leaned against the tree. She looked up and gazed at the brilliant stars shining in the dark sky. "I just heard that Maria has someone that she likes."

"Oh?"

"It's a guy in our class."

"Oh…" They remained in awkward silence after that, until Alphard sighed and pulled Canaan into her arms. 'There, there." She said soothingly and stroked the younger girl's white locks.

"I'm not crying." Canaan pointed out.

"I know."

"So why are you…?"

"Despite having a flat chest you are really nice to hug."

Canaan scoffed. "Yeah and I'll end up suffocating between your giant boobs."

Alphard grinned widely. "That's alright, it's how I like it." Her strange admission made Canaan laugh despite her slight depression. "So you really do like her, huh?" Canaan nodded. "Then don't give up. There's still hope!"

"What hope? I don't even understand the most basic things about love."

They both stood in silence, still embraced, as Alphard thought over what she could say to that. "Well… when you're in love you kiss the person you love, right?" Alphard had no idea what love really was either.

"Kiss? I've never even kissed anyone and I'm pretty sure I will fail at it."

Alphard looked up at the sky in thought. "I suppose some emotional investment is needed before you get around to kissing…" She moved Canaan away and looked into her eyes. "How do you confess?"

"Confess?" Canaan titled her head to the side.

"Yes, Canaan, confess. Do you know how to do it?"

"I…" Canaan looked away, "I guess."

"That's no good." Alphard shook her head and sighed. "Luckily for you I've been confessed to so many times I have already lost count."

"Are the guys that into you?"

Alphard laughed. "Guys? No! They were all girls." They remained silent for a moment as that sunk in, and then Canaan chuckled and shook her head.

"I should have known."

"But besides that, why don't you try practicing your confession?"

"H-how?"

"Just pretend that I'm Maria and say to me what you would want to confess to her." Alphard stepped back, closed her eyes, and when she opened it they sparkled innocently and she fluttered her eyelashes. "Canaan! Canaan, sugoi!" Alphard exclaimed.

"No…" Canaan shook her head, rejecting Alphard's failed attempt at impersonating her friend.

"What? I think I almost became Maria! All I need is blonde hair…"

Canaan laughed. "Okay, enough joking around. If we're going to do this then let's be serious."

"Hai!" Alphard straightened up and gave Canaan a salute. Canaan growled and raised a fist. "Okay, I'm finished with the jokes." Alphard waved her hands in panic, and then sighed in relief when her friend stood down and lowered her fist. "Alright, pretend that I'm Maria and approach me." Alphard took a few strides backwards and then acted like she was busy with something.

Canaan did as Alphard said and imagined it being her bubbly, blonde haired friend. The image made her stomach flutter with butterflies. She hesitantly approached 'Maria' and swallowed hard.

"H-hi, Maria? There's something I n-n-need to tell you."

Alphard raised an eyebrow but kept her opinions to herself for the moment and kept the act up. "What is it, Canaan?" She asked softly, in a girly voice that sounded surprisingly similar to Maria's. The sound made Canaan blink in confusion and then swallow as her heart skipped a beat.

This felt stupid, and Canaan felt stupid as well as nervous as hell even though there was no reason to be. She was just with Alphard, it wasn't actually Maria and she wasn't actually confessing. But Alphard looking so strangely innocent and giving her that bubbly smile Maria was famous for, unsettled her.

"M-Maria… I h-have something… I need…" Canaan paused and swallowed. It was harder than she had thought. She tried to speak again, but no words came out. Eventually she gave up trying to continue and just stared up at Alphard with pleading eyes.

Alphard sighed. "You're terrible at this." She regained her normal personality and gave the white haired girl a huge eye roll. "Let me show you." Alphard moved a few steps away and took a breath. "Canaan, imagine I am you and you are Maria."

"What?"

"Just do it! I'll show you how it's done."

Canaan sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She glanced to the side, the direction they had come from, and considered bolting. That would be incredibly mean though, since Alphard was trying her hardest to help her, even if it made her look and feel retarded. So Canaan squared her shoulders and prepared herself mentally.

Alphard noticed the set of determination on Canaan's face and smiled. She slowly approached her, stopped in front of her and then took a deep breath, keeping a determined look on her face. "Maria," Alphard began, "I need to tell you something."

The intensity of Alphard's gaze made Canaan's mind nearly blank, but she remembered what they were doing and hurried to respond. "Yes, Canaan?" It felt odd saying her name like she wasn't talking to herself. This whole thing still felt weird and stupid.

"We've been friends for a long time," Alphard stepped forward, making Canaan step back, "and ever since the first time we met, and I looked into your eyes, I started feeling something." Canaan's heart was pounding. She knew this was pretend, that Alphard didn't mean any of this, but there was just so much intensity in her eyes that it was as if she really was speaking her true feelings for Canaan. That couldn't be true though, could it?

Alphard walked forward again and Canaan had to step back or else they would bump into each other. She eventually backed into a tree, though, and had nowhere else to walk to create distance. Alphard, still looking calm and intense, put her arms out and rested her hands against the tree to either side of Canaan's head, effectively trapping her there.

"A-Alphard?" Canaan mumbled, not sure if they were still practicing anymore.

"That feeling grew," Alphard continued, not hesitant in the least even though Canaan was shaking like crazy, "whenever you said my name, or looked my way, or hugged me."

"Alphard… wait…"

"Or when you would fall asleep during lunch at school and use my lap as a pillow, or my shoulder."

Canaan swallowed really hard, her breathing hitched, her body trembled. She had never used Maria as a pillow before.

"My feelings grew when I would stare at your peaceful, smiling face and run my and through your soft, silky hair." Alphard moved closer. "I would yearn for your affections, for your touch." The raven-head leaned in even closer until their noses were almost touching. "What I'm saying is, I want your kiss to be mine alone, your touch to only linger on me, your voice to only whisper my name, and your heart to only belong to me. I love you." And with that the distance ceased to linger between them and their lips touched.

It was soft, and warm, and Canaan revelled in how wonderful it felt compared to her imagination. The softness of Alphard's lips was incredible, and they tasted slightly sweet.

Canaan wasn't really sure what she was doing, but Alphard had experience with this before and was taking the lead, with the younger girl following eagerly. They pulled back for air and panted together, and then Canaan surprised them both by pulling Alphard against her and capturing her lips again. This time she had an idea of what to do and she tried taking the lead.

It didn't last long. A soft, wet, sensation grazed across her bottom and Canaan realized it was Alphard's tongue. Instinctively her lips parted and Alphard's tongue entered her mouth. The shorter of the two tried to supress a whimper at the delightful sensation.

Curiously she lifted her own tongue and grazed it across Alphard's. The older girl seemed to lose her mind with the sensation and suddenly intensified the kiss. She hungrily took possession of Canaan's mouth and tongue, and Canaan was far too gone to mind.

After a while Canaan got the hang of it and soon she and Alphard were battling for control. They gripped tightly to each other and every so often one of them would whimper or moan.

When they broke apart for air again Alphard pushed away from Canaan and gave her a smirk. "And that's how you confess." She stated with a somewhat satisfied expression.

Canaan's brows furrowed as she sucked in deep breaths. She was sure that most of that hadn't been an act. "That was my first kiss…" Canaan said softly, to test the older girl's reaction.

"Oh crap…" It seemed to only dawn on Alphard then. "Canaan, I'm really sor-"

"No," Canaan straightened and shook her head. "Don't apologise."

"Why not?" Now it was Alphard's turn to furrow her brows.

"Because i-it was an… an incredible first kiss." Canaan blushed deep and crimson. She hardly blushed and it normally took a lot for her to, but when she did blush it was all consuming and very, very noticeable.

Now, instead of getting cocky or making a joke, like Canaan expected, Alphard blushed too and looked away while rubbing the back of her neck. This just supported Canaan's suspicion that none of that had been pretend and that Alphard was actually confessing to her in some weird, roundabout way.

"W-well of course!" Alphard said a bit forcefully and looked panicked. "I'm an amazing kisser by nature!" Even though she really would have said that, the way she said it now sounded nervous and panicked.

"Alphard… did you…"

"Canaan! Let's head back before the others start to worry." Alphard pointed towards the sound of laughter and looked at Canaan expectantly. There was a slight glint of something in her eyes that Canaan couldn't really place.

"Okay." She said simply and noted with a frown how Alphard's eyes seemed to dim the slightest. It was as if she had hoped Canaan would press the subject until she got the truth, or something.

They walked quietly, awkwardly together and returned to their group in no time.

"Ah, there you two are!" Yuri exclaimed and waved Alphard over. The raven-head offered a small smile to Canaan who was sitting down beside Maria and then hurried over to the woman in glasses.

"What's up?" She asked and exhaled slowly.

"Your… Alphard, you look all sweaty and flushed." Yuri put a hand around her chin and leaned in close to Alphard's face. She glanced over to Canaan, who was receiving the same interrogation from the blonde, and raised an eyebrow. Alphard could only hope she wouldn't ask because she really didn't want to have to lie or make up some story. There was no way she would tell the truth and explain that she had just made out, quite heavily, with Canaan. No, there was no way she would tell. "Anyway," Yuri decided to leave it and continued with her original train of thought, "your dad is here."

Alphard visibly straightened. "When did he get here? Where is he?"

"I take it you missed me?" From behind her a deep, masculine voice spoke up. Alphard broke into a wide smile and she turned around.

"Dad!" She exclaimed and gave him a one armed hug. "I was worried. I heard you played hero again." She folded her arms across her chest and gave him a stern look.

"Heh," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "I just can't resist the glory."

"Yeah, right." Alphard rolled her eyes and put a hand to her hip.

"You know, you look a lot like your mother with that pose."

Alphard chuckled. "Well I am her daughter."

Yuri smiled fondly and approached the two. She put her arms around their shoulders and steered them towards the group around the now bright fire. "Enough family bantering, Alphard, Siam, we need to join the group, least we be rude!"

Both father and daughter uttered a 'hai' in agreement and allowed the bespectacled woman to walk them to the others. Everyone noticed the three re-join and greeted Siam, Alphard's father, with warm smiles and teases.

Alphard laughed with them at some of the jokes, until they turned on her and it was Siam's turn to laugh at his daughter.

"Yo, Alphard." Alphard looked to the side and spotted the person who had greeted her.

"Santana! I didn't know you were coming." She reached out to shake his hand and noticed someone beside him. "And Hakko!"

"Yeah, but your father invited us at the last minute and we came here together." Santana explained with a grin. He gave Siam a salute, who returned it, and then smiled at his wife. Hakko leaned over him and gave Alphard a nod.

Santana worked alongside Siam in the police, but he as well as Hakko and Yuri had been friends with Siam since their childhood days.

The conversations continued and the laughter rose. Alphard and Canaan would make eye contact occasionally but both would quickly look away. Alphard actually felt stupid for what she had done earlier. Why had she even done that, though? Alphard sighed.

"And that old lady sigh?" Siam asked as he leaned in close to the raven-head.

"It's nothing, dad." Alphard responded and gave him a pat on the arm.

"If you say so." He gave her a playful punch on the arm and then turned back to his previous conversation. Before Alphard could get lost in her thoughts again, Santana stood and cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Ahem," Santana waited until all eyes were on him and then he smiled, "since we are all here I thought I would make an announcement." He looked down at Hakko, who hugged his leg and nodded for him to continue. "We found out just last week that Hakko is pregnant. We're going to have a baby!" He broke out in a wide grin and sat back down to pull Hakko into a hug.

Everyone smiled and cheered their congratulations and at some point they even did a toast.

"Canaan!" Siam suddenly called out, catching said girl's attention. Canaan said one last thing to Maria and Yunyun and then hurried over to Siam and Alphard with a nervous smile. "I haven't seen you in weeks. How have you been?" Siam draped an arm around her shoulders and put the other one around Alphard's, effectively pinning them both down under his arms. They shared an exasperated look and chuckled.

"I've been doing fine uncle Siam." Canaan responded.

"Did you know that this lake is called Lake CANAAN?" He asked. Canaan nodded. "I remember when I was still in highschool. A group of us, your parents included, came here together and had one hell of a party." Siam grinned at the memory.

"My parents did tell me that they had fond memories of this place." Canaan added.

"Ah, but do you know why they decided to call you Canaan?"

"Because this is a beautiful lake?"

"Nope." Siam released his daughter and her friend and laughed. "You were made here." He said simply and then leaned back in the chair in silence, waiting for it to sink in.

Alphard glanced at her father, then at a confused Canaan. Her face ballooned and then she burst out laughing.

"What's funny about this? I don't get it… what do you mean?" Canaan starting getting frustrated because of her complete confusion on what Siam had meant. This seemed to amuse Alphard more, and while Siam got up to go and antagonize Yuri, Alphard leaned in to Canaan's ear and whispered a few words to clear up her confusion.

"So they… here… and I… oh…" Canaan blushed crimson and looked down at the floor. "I should have guessed." Alphard laughed some more at the cute pinkness to Canaan's cheeks.

"Why were you named Alphard, though?" Canaan asked out of the blue, mainly to take the spotlight off of her own embarrassment.

"Oh, well my dad told me that one night he had taken my mother on a drive and they stopped by some cliff to watch the stars. They had just found out that my mother was pregnant with me and they saw this constellation that night, so they decided it just felt right and named me Alphard after the heart of that constellation." Alphard shrugged. "He also told me that some grandfather of his wanted his first born to bear his name, which is Alphard, so they gave the name to me despite the whole being a girl thing."

"I like your father."

"I know, everyone does." Alphard smiled. "He's like a giant, annoying, lovable teddy bear."

Canaan agreed with a nod and then returned to her group. Alphard watched them talk and noticed that Maria had intertwined her fingers with Canaan's. She also spotted the soft smile on her face and the obvious affection in her eyes as she gazed at Canaan while the white haired girl spoke animatedly about something. Alphard shook her head.

"That Canaan is so dense. She probably misheard the conversation or something." She shook her head and sighed.

This night, despite the awkward encounter with Canaan, was turning out better than she had anticipated. Alphard paused, and looked up at the sky as she wondered what exactly they were celebrating anyway.

* * *

Extra Note: Well, thank you for reading and I hoped you enjoyed it ^^


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